April 20, 2003
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Drake Stadium - Des Moines, Iowa - Apr. 24-26, 2003
Thursday, Apr. 24
Running Events: 4:25 p.m.
Field Events: 5 p.m.
Friday, Apr. 25
Running Events: 8 a.m.
Field Events: 8:30 a.m.
Saturday, Apr. 26
Running Events: 8 a.m.
Running Events: 10:30 a.m.
This Week
The Bears travel to Des Moines, Iowa for the 94th annual Drake Relays. The event gets underway with the early events of the heptathlon and decathlon on Wednesday, Apr. 23. Baylor athletes join the competition on Thursday with the 5,000 and 10,000-meter races. The meet continues Friday and Saturday.
Wariner Garners a Trio of Honors After Stellar Meet
Freshman Jeremy Wariner ran the first outdoor open 400 race of his career April 12 at the Sun Angel Classic, blowing away the competition with a nation-leading time of 45.13. In winning the race, he defeated World Champion Avard Moncur. Wariner clocked the fastest open 400 time of any Baylor athlete since Brandon Couts clocked a 44.79 in May of 2000. He came back to record a blazing split of 43.72 in the anchor leg of the 4x400 relay, leading the Bears to a second-place finish with a time of 3:04.68. Both the open time and the relay time easily exceeded the regional qualifying standards. For his outstanding performances, Wariner garnered Athlete of the Week honors from the Big 12, Trackshark and Mondo.
Last Year at Drake
Despite wind and rain-soaked conditions both Baylor's men's and women's 4x400-meter relays captured gold at the 93rd annual Drake Relays. The men's 4x400 relay returned to dominance at Drake after having finished second in the race in 2001, snapping a nine-year win streak in the event. Baylor's final time came in at 3:06.73, an NCAA provisional qualifying mark. The women's 4x400 relay turned in an impressive performance of its own, winning the event for the first time since 1999 and for the seventh time in nine years with a time of 3:34.69. The women's 4x100-meter relay was the Bears' only other top-five finish in the finals, clocking a final time of 45.35. Baylor athletes posting top-eight finishes for Bears throughout the weekend included Jon Capron in the 800 (6th, 1:53.11), Alisha Hooker in the 100-meter hurdles (7th, 14.36) and Matt Chance in the 1,500 (7th, 3:53.97).
Marvin Sets School Record in the Steeplechase
After a plethora of school records fell during the indoor campaign, it took four meets before a new name was added to the outdoor record book. Freshman Angela Marvin was the first Bear to accomplish the feat this spring, clocking a 10:30.56 to set a new Baylor standard in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Running the race for only the second time in her career, the cross country standout recorded the fastest time in the Big 12 as of April 15. She is joined by three teammates at the top of the conference rankings as Leah Marbach (10:50.34), Jessa Vacek (10:52.39) and Stephanie Bennett (10:56.02) follow her in the standings.
Two More Bears Qualify for Regionals
Two more Bears qualified for the regional meet last weekend at the Michael Johnson Classic, bringing the list of regional-eligible competitors to 20 individuals and three relays. Jordan Lewis had a stellar meet in front of the home crowd. He clocked a personal best 400 hurdle time of 52.17 to be the top finals qualifier. He proceeded to break his own mark, recording a 51.90 to win the university division of the event. Long jumper Matt Linn was the other new regional qualifier last time out. With a leap of 24-2 1/2, he finished third and qualified for the regional meet.
Hart Leads Baylor for 40th Season
Clyde Hart begins his 40th season as the head coach of Baylor's track and field program this season. In his tenure at BU, Hart has firmly established the Bear program as one of the best in the nation. Hart has coached athletes to 24 national championships (11 individual/13 relay) and 446 All-America awards (148 individual/298 relay). Named the men's assistant coach for Team USA at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, Hart has coached athletes to ten world record performances. In 1996, he was named the Coach of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee. That year he coached Michael Johnson to gold medals in the 200-meters and 400-meters at the Games of the 26th Olympiad in Atlanta, Ga. Hart also was named the NCAA Indoor Coach of the Year in 1996 after garnering such honors in 1989. A four-time Southwest Conference Indoor Coach of the Year, Hart has established Baylor as a quarter-mile powerhouse after producing 13 4x400 relay national champions and four individual 400-meter national champions.
Bears Among the Trackwire Dandy Dozen
Four individuals and the men's 4x400 relay team are among those listed in the April 15 edition of the Trackwire Dandy Dozen. The quartermilers lead the way for the men. With a stellar race last weekend, Jeremy Wariner has moved up to fifth in the 400. Darold Williamson is 11th in the event. Both All-Americans run on the 4x400 relay, which ranks third. On the women's side, Debbie Thornhill is listed as No. 10 in the 10,000-meters while Lakadron Ivery is 10th in the 100.
Baylor Athletes Set 18 Regional-qualifying Marks In Arizona
The list of Baylor's NCAA regional qualifiers grew dramatically as the Bears had a great meet at Arizona State's Sun Angel Classic, recording 18 regional-qualifying marks. While several athletes improved their previous season bests, some athletes joined the list of qualifiers for the first time including Jeremy Wariner and Darold Williamson (400), Nick Devenport (1,500) and Kyle King (5,000) on the men's side and Lakadron Ivery (LJ), Jessa Vacek (steeple) and Debbie Thornhill (5,000) for the women. 18 Bears have qualified for the regional meet in 20 individual events. Two relays on the women's side and one for the men also have earned lanes at regionals. Ivery is the only athlete to qualify for multiple individual events, exceeding the standard in the 100, 200 and long jump.
Men's Relay Teams Take Second
The 4x400 relay has annually been the signature event for the Baylor men's track team, but the other relays ran well at the Texas Relays. Competing in the event for the first time this season, the 4x800 team of Jon Capron, Wil Fitts, Brian McDonald and Nick Devenport took second place finishing the race in 7:27.01. A day latter, running the race for the first time outdoors, Devenport and Fitts teamed with Joel Martin and Kyle King to take second in the distance medley relay with a time of 9:45.47.
Thornhill Runs Stellar 10K at Stanford
Senior Debbie Thornhill traveled to Stanford's Cobb Track and Angell Field March 28 to compete in the 10,000-meter race at the Stanford Invitational. She had an incredible race clocking an automatic NCAA qualifying mark of 33:34.85. It was the second-fastest 10K time ever recorded by a Baylor female as well as being the fastest women's time clocked at a meet other than the national championships. Thornhill, who is the defending Big 12 champion in the event, ran the fastest time in the Big 12 so far this season to qualify for her first trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, which will be held in Sacramento, Calif. June 11-14.
Wariner Garners All-America Accolades
Freshman Jeremy Wariner clocked a season-best time of 46.12 to finish second in his heat and fourth in the prelims of the 400-meter dash at the NCAA Indoor Championships at the University of Arkansas' Randall Tyson Track Center. He proceeded to the finals where he finished seventh with a time of 46.21 to earn his first career All-America honor.
Petrahn Concludes Career at Big 12 Indoor Championships
Barbara Petrahn concluded her stellar Baylor career at the Big 12 Indoor Championships. She is tied for the women's record, earning nine All-America honors. During her time with the Green and Gold, Petrahn anchored six relays to the NCAA finals as well as running third on one relay and twice earning individual All-America honors in the 400. Petrahn also was a five-time Big 12 champion, which also ties her for the Baylor women's record. The Gyor, Hungary-native clocked a provisional time of 54.24 in the 400, but it was not fast enough to qualify for another shot at All-America honors.
Outdoor Track and Field Changes to Regional Format
Instead of qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships by the traditional method of automatic and provisional qualifying standards, the 2003 season will be the beginning of regional qualifying. Four two-day regionals will be held across the country with the top five individuals and the top three relays advancing to nationals. At large bids, expected to be around six for individual events and five for relays, will then be selected based on the descending order lists compiled throughout the season and the conference championships. The participants in the multi events, heptathlon and decathlon, and the 10,000-meter run will continue to be determined by the traditional format of automatic and provisional qualifying marks. The move to regional qualifying will increase the number of NCAA competitors to nearly 1,100 participants.
